


Autumn Leaves

by Silver_Samurai



Category: Naruto
Genre: Eventual Fluff, Eventual Romance, F/F, Fluff, Friendship, Ino is a waitress, M/M, Naruto and Sasuke are oblivious of how much they like each other, Naruto is nosy but has good intentions, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sakura is a medical student, Shy Sakura Haruno, Slow Burn, Tea shop AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-08
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2019-08-20 19:54:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 3,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16562174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silver_Samurai/pseuds/Silver_Samurai
Summary: The Autumn Leaves tea shop was a favourite of Sakura's. The shop was beautiful, full of vintage bookshelves, fairylights and overhanging orchids. The tea was fragrant and delicious, and it was her favourite place to study. And the blonde waitress that worked there was very cute. Which is irrelevant, of course.





	1. Rainy morning

**Author's Note:**

> Writing a fanfiction is a first for me really, so I'm not really sure how this will turn out. But I hope you all like it! I felt like this particular idea for an AU was cute, and Ino X Sakura is hyper underrated.

"One jasmine green coming up!"

The Autumn Leaves tea shop was a favourite haunt of Sakura Haruno's. Vintage bookshelves overhung with orchids and fairylights, the calming scent of floral teas...A surprisingly good view into the city park (all brown and orange and gold at this time of year)...It was the perfect place to catch up with her studies. And the waitress was cute. _But that's not why I'm here!_ , Sakura mentally scolded herself.

The sound of pouring tea tugged her back into reality, as the aforementioned blonde looked at Sakura with interest. "What're you writing?" She said, her willingness to start a conversation taking the pinkette by suprise. 

"An essay for medical school..why do you ask?"

_maybe that sounded a little too accusatory..._

"I uh...just curious I guess?"

Cringing at how awkward she'd made the atmosphere, Sakura took a sip of the tea, inhaling it's calming scent gratefully.  _Perfect as usual..._

"So you go to medical school huh? That's impressive!"

Sakura found herself blushing with pride at the genuine admiration in the blonde's words, along with her attempt to save the conversation.

_She's so darn nice..._

"To be honest it's a lot of work..But I'm proud to have made it this far! Still, my dream of becoming a doctor seems out of my depth..."

Her sudden display of motivation surprised the waitress, who couldn't help but giggle a little at this newfound side to her customer.

"I'm called Ino by the way...Ino Yamanaka."

_W-what? I thought she was going to make fun of me or something..._

"Sakura. Haruno Sakura."

As she left the tea shop, umbrella in hand, Sakura somehow felt that autumn was more colourful and full of life than she had ever noticed before. Each drop of rain was filled with invigorating scents and reflected light, each leaf a delicate web of earthy colour.

_Ino Yamanaka huh..._

_Maybe we could be friends._

 


	2. Vintage tablecloths

Ino Yamanaka tipped the watering can gently, letting a shower of crystalline water darken the soil. The orchids were blooming, and the morning's showers had cleared up, leaving a fresh feeling in the air. Ino hummed with satisfaction, thinking over the morning's events. 

_I finally got to talk to that cute girl, Sakura!..I haven't been able to stop thinking about her since she started coming to this shop three weeks ago. I'm not sure why, but she intrigues me... She's always working hard, poring over notes, but she acts shy when I talk to her...She seems really nice though._

Snapping herself out of her thoughts, the blonde wiped down the tables, a slight pink colour dusting her cheeks. 

_I'm acting like a school kid with a crush, getting so excited over talking to some customer. If I want to be friends with her that bad I should just do it. Tch._

She bit her lip slightly in defiance, straightening out the vintage tablecloths and the tiny rose vase on each table.

_Sakura Haruno's friend...That has a nice ring to it..._

"Excuse me?"

A soft yet assertive voice cut through Ino's thoughts as the subject of her daydreaming walked right into the shop, causing her to splutter slightly. "How can I help you?"

_Oh my god. That'll teach me not to slack off while I'm working._

"I think I left some notes on the table...They should be in a large pink folder..." Sakura trailed off uncertainly, as both girls realised it wasn't there. 

_AwkwardsilenceIhavetosaysomethinghelp_

"I'm not sure you left it here-"

_Ok ok so far so good_

"-but if you give me your number I'll be able to let you know if I find it."

_DID I REALLY JUST SAY THAT HOLY CRAP I'M SCREWED-_

"I, uh, sure..." The pinkette stuttered, pulling a pen out of her bag and hastily scrawling something down on a napkin. 

_w a i t   w h a t_

The pink haired angel thanked her somewhat frantically before making a bee-line for the door, which slammed decisively behind her.

And Ino was left alone in her thoughts, clutching the holy napkin.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed my attempt at a second chapter >:)  
> Tbh I'm satisfied with how this story is going so far, and it's pretty fun to write, so expect more chapters.


	3. Flushed pink

Sakura had to harness every inch of her willpower not to run out of the shop in embarrassment. Thankfully the cool fresh air helped her to calm down as she made her way back to her apartment (half expecting Ino to appear behind her and tell it was all a mistake and she didn't like Sakura at all, much less want her number.) 

The more she thought about it, the more she cringed at her incompetence. First, she managed to lose her  _very important folder_ and then she immediately jumped to the conclusion that she left it in the tea shop, only to find it wasn't there. 

_stupid_

And she'd managed to completely embarrass herself in front of the cute, nice,  _perfect_ waitress who she 100% didn't have a platonic crush on.

_Who gave you her number._

Who probably thinks she's a complete wreck

_Who might text you back._

Sakura gulped and unlocked the door, breathing in deeply to calm herself as she plonked down on the sofa, glad to see her roommate wasn't there to annoy her.

_She is **not** going to text you back._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A pretty short uneventful chapter, but I wanted to show what Sakura was feeling. The next chapter might also focus on her, and I'll eventually introduce the mystery roommate ;)  
> And is she going to get a text back?


	4. Ringing phones and grey drizzle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is after a few days btw it wasn't clear sorry

Sakura eyed her phone warily from across the room, as if it might bite. She'd strategically placed it on the other side of the room, to avoid distractions, but it wasn't exactly working.

She scowled through the murky windows. It had been drizzling all morning, and she had an important essay due in the next day. Concentration was a big issue, considering every time her phone pinged she would catapult herself out of the chair in a frenzy to reach it. Only to discover she'd been tagged in a meme, or it was a message about the essay.

_As if she needed reminders._

There was a sickening crunch as Sakura pressed her pen down just a little too hard, sending a formidable globule of ink spurting across the paper.

Sakura froze, mesmerised, as she watched it glisten and consume the entire page like a greedy slug.

_F u c k  I t. I'm going out._

 

The Caffeine Temple was very busy at the weekend, being the most popular café in the city. However it had a very pleasant atmosphere, and served some killer chai lattes.  _And I am n o t going to Autumn Leaves or I will actually implode._

"What do you want today, Sakura? Also, if you see Naruto tell him to get his ugly ass over here and apologise." The barista was a close friend of Sakura's roommate, but they argued so much it was maddening. And Sakura was always the messenger.

"What's that insufferable block-head done now? And I'll have a chai latte. Have I mentioned how good those are?"

_Besides, they definitely have a thing for each other. They're just the only ones who don't know it yet._

The dark-eyed man cringed and ran his fingers through his ebony hair. "You know what, get him to tell you. It's his fault anyway." He left rather abruptly, a slight pink dusting his pale skin.

Nearly an hour of sipping coffee, while listening to the pleasant hum of chatter and the lazy pattering of the rain calmed Sakura down enough to consider the prospect of rewriting her essay. And almost forget about a certain cute girl having her number.  _Almost._

She steeled herself, breathing in deeply, and waved to the barista, who still seemed flustered. The door jangled merrily behind her and Sakura tried to visualise leaving all her frustrations back in the shop. As she walked back (it was still drizzling, unfortunately) she felt much more focused and motivated than before.The apartment door clicked behind her, and that's when she saw the phone, sitting innocently on the table.

_Welp, guess it's time to see if I have any messages. Not that it matters, of course._

Why did she feel so nervous? The pinkette gulped slightly, turning it on, to reveal:

 

 

0 notifications.

 

 

 

_What did I expect, really... It's not like Ino cares or knows anything about me. I should just-_

"Heya. Did Sasuke apologise yet?" There was something irritating about Naruto's painfully easy-going voice, but it snapped Sakura out of her destructive chain of thoughts and made her feel steadier. 

"He told me to tell _you_ to apologise. What happened between you two anyway?" Sakura suppressed a giggle at their lover's spat.

"Ask him to tell you. It's his fault anyway." Naruto pouted slightly, turning away.

Sakura tried to protest, but was immediately cut off as the blonde spoke again, this time mischievously "So Sakura, you never told me you had a secret girlfriend. She was ringing you while you were out, so I answered of course-"

Sakura felt her soul fleeing her body, leaving her a strange, pasty white colour.

"- She said she wanted to know if you found your folder, and if you were doing ok. Since apparently you haven't been to her shop for a few days or something. Avoiding her I see." He winked obnoxiously to emphasise his point, before continuing,", and I, naturally, said you'd love to see her. On a date. So if I were you I'd ring her back and sort out the details. Thank me later." And with that, Naruto strided out of the room, leaving Sakura to reassemble her brain and pick up the pieces of whatever colossal mess he had caused.

_I just had the ultimate out of body experience._

Sakura slowly reached for the phone, a pained smile on her face as she dialled in a number.

"Hello, Sasuke? Oh, I told Naruto to apologise...yeah, what did you expect and.... really?... anyway, Naruto wants to go on a date with you. He was too embarrassed to ring you himself so I did it for him. But if I were you, I would ring him back and sort out the details. You're welcome, bye."

There was an intense silence as Sakura hung up, suddenly realising what had just happened. And, hands shaking like autumn leaves, she dialled another number.

.......

...

"H-hello? It's Sakura ..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO MUCH IS SUDDENLY HAPPENING I'M SUPRISING MYSELF


	5. Binder in hand, brandishing a pen.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ino picks an outfit, and reminisces about her first meeting with our favourite pink haired nerd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry these chapters are so short and not much happens in them. They just feel like appropriate places to end the chapter.

This is not a date, Ino told herself for the millionth time, as she plunged her arm into the depths of her wardrobe, fishing for her favourite hoodie. She'd spent at least an hour choosing the right outfit, but everything seemed to feel too scruffy or too formal. 

 

**_It's not a date._ **

 

Finding her prize, Ino yanked the hoodie out of the wardrobe with a little too much vigour, cursing as coat hangers scattered everywhere. Why'd she have to get flustered so damn easily?

She didn't used to be like this. 

Ino was always the dumb blonde, the one who was supposed to be sassy, confident, and a colossal bitch. And it's true there was a time she was like that, when she loved the attention. But she was tired of living up to her reputation, tired of playing dumb, tired of her 'friends’. She wanted to be taken seriously.

 

Maybe it was the appearance of a certain pinkette that caused this change of heart. She could still remember the day Sakura first came to the tea shop, binder in hand, brandishing a pen.

 

Ino been out drinking the night before, and had wound up with an awful hangover. She was slacking off as usual, and hadn't even bothered to clean properly. Looking back she could see the selfishness of her actions, and felt guilty for all the trouble she had caused her boss. Shizune had offered Ino the job at Autumn Leaves as a last chance, having seen the trouble she was getting into, but at the time Ino had even had the audacity to complain about the work. 

 

_ I really have changed since then. _

 

But seeing the pink haired girl working diligently, notes strewn across the table like autumn leaves had triggered something inside of her. The way her green eyes sparked with concentration and something else (....determination?) made Ino want to change. She wanted to be like that girl,  _ she wanted to be taken seriously. _

 

And the way Sakura's face had animated when she talked to her, features lighting up as she said the simple words 'jasmine green please’, made Ino feel a strange emotion she'd never felt before. Everything suddenly felt brighter and more alive, the smell of fresh rain, the gentle pink of falling blossoms. 

 

_ And though I'll never get to thank her for it, my cute pink haired regular saved my life. _

 

Donning her favourite hoodie, Ino stepped out onto the street, internally thanking Sakura's roommate for being a nosy little shit.

 

_ I'm ready for this date. _


	6. Leaf Skeletons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The date commences.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god I haven't updated this in so long, but I'm finally back! I can't promise that I'll write regularly now, but this fanfiction isn't dead yet, and I'll definitely write more.

It was 3 in the afternoon, and though the temperature had been dropping, streams of crisp light illuminated the city. But the November sun had done little to warm the air and most people stayed inside to avoid the chill.

But if you were to venture out, you'd see two girls walking through the park in their warm winter coats, cheeks pink from the stinging air and warm conversation.

"To be honest, I was kind of relieved when your friend answered the phone instead of you. I mean, not that I didn't want to talk to you but it was embarrassing. I mean not you, but-"

"Roommate." Sakura interjected firmly. "And I was also...nervous to talk to you. I just wanted to see you again, I...uh, not in a weird way of course, I just felt like..." Sakura trailed off nervously, but the silence melted away when Ino giggled in response.

"Just felt like we could be friends?"

"Exactly!" Sakura squeaked slightly, burying her pink face into her scarf to hide her embarrassment. But Ino's warm smile reassured her.

_I'm glad one of us isn't a socially awkward mess,_ she thought, not realising that Ino was smiling to hide her own nervousness. 

_Oh my god she's hiding her face in her scarf oh my god she's hiding her face in her scarf_ _o h  m y  g o d  s h e 's  s o  c u t e_

"Do you... Do you want to get something to eat?" The blonde tried to keep her voice level, sick with worry that she'd somehow mess the date up.

_Date? I mean, it's not really a date. It's a platonic date. Platonic. A friendship date? Friendly outing? Mutual meeting?_

"So where do you want to go?"

_I'm glad one of us is capable of intelligent conversation. Because I am not focusing right now. Focus blondie. Focus._

"There's a bakery near here where they do really good cakes. If you like cake that is. Uh, if you don't-" 

"Cake sounds good!" Sakura immediately regretted her interruption, and the way her voice went up by at least a tone every time she talked to Ino. But she had unknowingly saved Ino from rambling, which the other was thankful for.

They started walking across the park, kicking up leaf skeletons as they went, and a peaceful silence settled between them. The afternoon sunlight settled gently on Ino's face, causing her to glow slightly, and they turned to look at each other. As if their silence carried a message, Sakura tentatively reached out with her hand, and Ino did the same, fingertips softly brushing against each other as they interlo-

"Hey Sakura! Have you kissed her yet! Are y-"

"Shut up Naruto." Sasuke's cold words interrupted Naruto's, and the two girls spun round to look at the source of the offending voice, both girls blushing profusely.

"What are  _you_ doing here."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to get back into the story but I hope that was decent? Honestly I don't really know what I'm doing, but it's fun writing.


	7. Profiteroles and an Espresso

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a laptop now so I don't have to write on my phone anymore! Thank fuck! So basically, I might actually start writing more now. Probably.

The two boys were sat at a small table together, Naruto tucking into an impressive stack of profiteroles while Sasuke sipped at an espresso. Sakura felt her heart plummet to the bottom of her stomach, her brain wildly calculating every possible way Naruto could mess up her "friendship" date. He was a well-intentioned idiot, but that didn't make him any less of an idiot. 

"Are you Sakura's friends? Nice to meet you, I'm Ino Yamanaka."

Shaken out of her thoughts, Sakura turned to Ino (noticing she was blushing slightly), and then ,awkwardly, to the others.

_Wait...Are they blushing too?  No way, are they actually..._

"What are you two doing here?" She asked more confidently.

_They were definitely blushing now._

Her prior embarrassment turned to smugness. "No way, you actually took my call seriously? You two are on a da-"

Naruto stood up defiantly, opening his mouth, but was interrupted by Sasuke.

"Yeah, we're on a date. What of it? It looks like you're doing the same thing, no?"

Naruto stood there for a second, opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish, before slowly sitting down again, stunned. Everyone was thoroughly embarrassed now, except maybe Sasuke, who, surprisingly had become completely calm. Actually, he looked somewhat irritated and both girls decided it was probably time to leave the boys alone to get on with their date. Especially since Naruto was currently burying his bright red face in his hands.

_Oh how the tables have turned,_ Sakura thought as they made their way out of the shop. It was only when the had made their way halfway down the street that she realised they had never bought lunch.

"D-do you want to go somewhere else for food? I guess it's a bit late to uh, go back there to get cake..." Sakura trailed off and turned to Ino, who was lost in thought. There was a moments silence before Ino looked up at her with uncharacteristic nervousness. 

"I...Think I need to get going soon. \it's not that I haven't enjoyed today or anything! But...My parents will be wondering what I'm doing." Her nervousness, instantly made Sakura feel worried she had done something, but she pushed those thoughts out of her mind, recognising Ino felt uncomfortable. 

"That's ok, really. It was lots of fun hanging out with you."

Ino's expression momentarily relaxed into a confident smile.

"See you at Autumn Leaves," She said with such genuineness and warmth that Sakura couldn't help but smile.  

And with those words Ino Yamanaka turned and walked down the street, her figure melting away into the distance as Sakura stood, watching her go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still incapable of writing long chapters for some reason, but who cares honestly.


	8. First Snow

It had been two months since Sakura and Ino had seen each other. It was January now, and the rust red autumn had long since dissolved into bleak nothingness. The first week since their date had passed with anticipation as Sakura had come to the tea shop whenever she was free, but the Ino was nowhere to be seen. Sakura's visits the next few weeks were less frequent, and soon ceased when she went back home to stay with her family for the Christmas holidays. She had texted Ino once, wishing her a happy Christmas, but had received no reply, and though her efforts to contact the other girl were pretty non-existant, Sakura felt like Ino's lack of communication spoke a thousand words. Was it her fault? Had she upset her somehow? Her initial excitement to see Ino again turned to hurt, and a lump formed in her throat as she walked home to her apartment. It was her first day back in the city. 

As she walked down the familiar pavements, Sakura new she should just try to contact her again. She should send a message, or at least ask someone else how she was doing. But their silence had stagnated like a slow flowing river, freezing over, and she didn't know how to break the ice. She rounded the street corner, and that's when she saw it: Autumn Leaves tea shop. It...was empty. Sakura's heart leapt in her chest at the sight of it, immediately plummeting at the sight of the closed sign hung on the other side of the glass door. She placed her hands on the glass and peered through at the deserted tables. Despite it's emptiness, the place was immaculate, the table cloths neatly folded and put away, the shelves well dusted, the wooden floorboards polished. Someone was taking care of it but...why was it closed? How long had it been shut for? Would it open again?

For the duration of the Christmas holidays Sakura had been caught in an emotional turmoil, wondering where Ino had gone and when she would return. Trapped in her thoughts they had soon got out of control, her mind feverishly wondering whether Ino had even liked her in the first place. Whether  _she_ even liked Ino in the first place. Had she been mistaken? Her mind had led her down a path of confusion. One minute, swearing she didn't care about Ino, the next in tears that Ino hated her. There was no doubt that her feelings were a complex web, interweaving and intertwining until she didn't know what she wanted anymore. But standing in front of the tea shop, clammy hands on the cold glass, she felt such a strong rush of emotions that she couldn't ignore them or pretend she didn't care.

_She might not have contacted me, but that was no excuse. i Should have called her to see if she was ok. I shouldn't have blamed her without knowing what happened. And I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. I don't know if her feelings have changed, but that moment two months ago, she promised to see me again from the bottom of her heart. I don't think i could have misjudged her. And... I know i care about her too. I don't  know how, or where these feelings came from, but when I think of spending time with her again it just feels...right. Maybe my feelings don't make sense but they exist alright. I...I have to at least see her one more time._

Sakura stepped back from the glass, her head feeling clear. As she continued walking down the street to her apartment, she felt an uncharacteristic sense of confidence. It was beginning to snow, the first snow of the year, and as the little flakes settled on her face she smiled. Being home felt right.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like that was really cringey, writing is so hard sometimes jesus christ  
> But whatever I have no shame anymore so I don't really give shit :/
> 
> I hope that was half decent and made some sort of sense? I'm literally making this plot up as I go along I hope you didn't notice


End file.
